Ford Mustang gets ready for the Big Five-Oh!

Ford is preparing to celebrate 50 years continuous production of one its most legendary models, with the Mustang’s big five-oh in 2014.

The brainchild of US auto industry icon, Lee Iacocca, the car was initially built on the underpinnings of the humble Falcon sedan, to save costs and provide seating for four.

It created an immediate sensation (22,000 sales in its first day) and spawned a group of similarly sized GT competitors, including Chevrolet’s Camaro, which came to be known as ‘pony cars.’

Over (close to) five decades the Mustang has evolved through five generations, muscling up in the late 1960s and early ‘70s with massive engines and significant motorsport success.

It shrank through the fuel-crisis ‘70s, but gradually came back to enjoy genuine muscle car status in the current version.

Ford says it has licenced 50 companies to create products bearing the special Mustang 50 logo, including high-quality die cast models, videogames, watches and apparel. And stand by for limited edition ‘50 Years’ version of the car.